Sports Instruction Method and Apparatus

ABSTRACT

The present invention includes a method for instructing a student including the steps of generating a first video feed of first video signals to record the student at a first angle at a facility, generating a second video feed of second video signals to record the student at a second angle at the facility, transmitting the first video feed and the second video feed to a remote location to the facility, and providing instruction to the student by an instructor at the remote location simultaneously as the first video feed and the second video feed is being generated.

PRIORITY

The present invention claims priority under 35 USC section 119 and basedupon the provisional application 61/638,998 which was filed on Apr. 26,2012

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a method and system for monitoring performancecharacteristics of athletes and in particular the particular movementswhich contribute to enhanced performance.

BACKGROUND

Monitoring of athletes performance both in training and in competitionis important in the development and implementation of new approachesaimed at improving sporting performance.

The ability to measure and record athlete physiological information andpositional information associated with athlete movement in real-time iscritical in the process of athlete training and coaching. Blood oxygen,respiration, heart rates, velocity, acceleration/force, changes indirection, and position and many other factors are required in eliteathlete training and coaching. The position, movement and forceinformation plays an important role in effective analysis of the athleteperformance, especially for rowers. For example, the stroke frequency,force and synchronisation of athletes are critical for the performanceof the rowers in a competition. Currently the stroke information canonly be measured in either dedicated sports laboratories or usingsimulated devices. Reliable analysis of the stroke rate and strokedistance in rowing has been a challenge for a long time due to theavailability of the real scenario data, in particular a high precisionof position, velocity and acceleration data. Existing technologies usedfor this purpose include theoretical studies, video-footage procedure,indoor tank procedure, computer modeling and ergometer studies. Much ofthe equipment is either too heavy, expensive, obtrusive or lessreliable. Therefore, smart real-time monitoring during training andcompetition to help elite athletes to improve their performance andavoid injuries is critical for both athletes and coaches. Anymethodology that would improve the situation would not only bringbenefits to the rower practice, but also to many other sports relatedapplication including both team sports and individual athlete.

SUMMARY

The present invention includes a method for instructing a studentincluding the steps of generating a first video feed of first videosignals to record the student at a first angle at a facility, generatinga second video feed of second video signals to record the student at asecond angle at the facility, transmitting the first video feed and thesecond video feed to a remote location to the facility, and providinginstruction to the student by an instructor at the remote locationsimultaneously as the first video feed and the second video feed isbeing generated.

The first video feed may be generated by a first video camera.

The second video feed may be generated by a second video camera.

The first video feed may be recorded into a library at the remotelocation.

The second video feed may be stored in a library at the remote location.

The student may access the first video feed stored at the library at theremote location.

The student may access the second video feed stored at the library atthe location.

The instructor may access the first video feed stored at the library atthe remote location.

The instructor may access the second video feed stored at the library atthe remote location.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention may be understood by reference to the followingdescription taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, inwhich, like reference numerals identify like elements, and in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a system diagram of the present invention;

FIGS. 2-58 illustrate screenshots of the present invention;

FIG. 59 illustrates a flowchart of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention may be an instruction method and apparatus whichmay be supported with infrastructure to allow remoteinstructors/reviewers to view students simultaneously from multipleviews and to coach/critique the students based upon the multiple viewsin real time.

The present invention includes a facility which is defined as thelocation in which the student performs the sport activity, cameras andInternet access devices which may be installed. Fees may be determinedby the facility to be paid by the student as part of the program.

The instructors may register in order to obtain the status of acertified instructor, and the instructors may create a profile pagewhich includes the qualifications, sports, rates and availability timesof the instructor. The instructor fees may be paid by the student aspart of the program.

The students may choose an instructor and sport/activity and mayregister and schedule the student for lessons at a facility.

The instructors may register as a certified instructor for a particularsport or activity and the instructor may create an instructor profilepage which may include their qualifications, sports, rates and availabletimes. The instructor may be paid by the student as a part of thisprogram.

The students may register and schedule themselves for lessons for aparticular sport and from a particular instructor at the facility. Thestudents may access a website to manage their lessons for exampleprovides student bills and sends reminders in the form of email/text aswell as a video library of the student's prior lessons so that thestudent can track their progress and view their past lessons.

The students may be remote from the instructors and multiple cameras torecord video of the student and to provide multiple images at differentangles with respect to the student so that the instructor may see allthe relevant movement or positions of the student. The images may betransmitted through the Internet or wireless to the location of theinstructor. The instructor may provide real-time instruction to thestudent by using a video/audio feed so the student receives instantfeedback which is not delayed by any significant amount of time. Withrespect to the entire present invention, simultaneous may mean at leastone of immediate, without delay by any significant amount of time,sufficient amount of time for the exchange of information between theinstructor and student and vice versa, wirelessly or over the Internet.

The present invention provides the instructors the ability to view theperformance of the student and multiple angles simultaneously as well asto replay the video from the multiple cameras in slow-motion so that theperformance can be better analyzed which may improve instructions fromthe instructor.

FIG. 1 illustrates a student device 101 which may be connected to theInternet 107, a facility device 103 which may be connected to theInternet 107, and instructor device 105 which may be connected to theInternet 107, a server/database 109 which may be connected to theInternet 107 and a facility 111 which may be connected to the Internet107. All of the present invention describes the Internet 107, theInternet 107 may be a wireless interconnection or may be wired.

The student device 101, the facility device 103 and the instructordevice 105 may be a personal computer, a smart phone, a tablet or othertype of communication device. The student device 101 may be used by thestudent to enroll to be able to use the facility 111, to set up aprofile for the student, to schedule lessons with the instructor, toview lessons/practice session videos which have been recorded and storedwithin the server/database 109, to upload personal video which may nothave been recorded at the facility 111. The facility device 103 may beaccessed by the student and the instructor to enroll for use of thefacility 111, to set up the profile from the student device 101 and/orthe instructor device 105, and fees which may have been paid by thestudent, to maintain and availability calendar which may show theavailability of each of the instructors, to conduct real-time remotetraining session between the instructor and the student, to providestudent communication with the instructor and to receive payment andrecord payment from the student.

The instructor device 105 may be used to enroll the instructor so thathe has access to the facility 111 to allow the instructor to set up aprofile of the instructor in order to attract students, to enter fees tobe charged to the student, to maintain an availability calendar of theinstructor to allow the student to schedule a practice session with theinstructor, to allow communication with the student and to receivepayment from the student.

The facility 111 may include a mobile Internet device 111 to receivevideo images from the first video camera 113, to receive video imagesfrom the second video camera 115 and to transmit audio/video to thestudent communication device 117 so that the student can receive videoand or audio as feedback from the instructor device 105. In addition tothe first video camera 113 and the second video camera 115, additionalvideo cameras may be placed at additional angles in front of, behind oralong side of the student.

FIG. 2 illustrates a screenshot of the landing page of the presentinvention and shows the advantages for facility enrollment. Theadvantages may include differentiating the facility by providingcustomers (i.e. students) the opportunity to learn from masterinstructors around the world, enable customers to excel, and achievehigher levels of competitive status within the community, and enhancethe value of the on-site instructors. The advantages of the instructorenrollment may include a video of on-site lessons so students can viewthemselves to reinforce your instruction, to extend your reach byallowing students from around the world to benefit from yourinstruction, and to instruct from a better vantage point by leveragingmultiple viewing angles. The advantages for the student may include totake lessons from instructors from around the world, to video thelessons by an on-site instructor, to video your practice sessions toconfirm your execution, and to have at your fingertips your videolearning library so you can see your progress and share with friends.

The landing page may include a sample video 119 showing one angle ofmovement as well as depicting the present invention's Instructor'sExperience showing for example the student on the first video camera121, a second sample video 123, a third sample video 125, and a fourthsample video 127 all showing different angles of the same movement.

FIG. 3 illustrates a screenshot 301 of the facility enrollment which mayinclude three steps. The first step presents how the invention mayimprove the facility being enrolled by increasing its revenues throughuse by remote instructors and earn them additional revenue from the useby on-site instructors who can then offer their students a video oftheir lessons. The facility may determine the usage fee and theavailability schedule.

The present invention may provide additional value to the existinglesson program by providing videos for traditional lessons by on-siteinstructors at no additional cost. The present invention maydifferentiate the lesson program and attract more students.

As shown in FIG. 1, at no cost to the facility 111 video cameras 113,115 can be installed and a wireless Internet surface to stream video tothe server 109 may be installed with a standard communication device 117which may be a microphone may be installed at the facility 111.

The present invention may have a prerequisite for installation to makethe installation economically prudent including a promotional offer tovideo existing traditional on-site lesson program, the facility 111 maycommit to video for six months at no cost. Advertising the presentinvention at the facility 111 may be required.

If there is no traditional on-site lesson program at the facility 111,contact information for a predetermined number students who want to takelessons with the present invention may be provided so that an offer ofenrollment can be presented.

FIG. 4 illustrates a screenshot 401 to be used in the facilityenrollment step 2 where the facility name, the facility email address,the facility address, the facility phone number, and the facilitywebsite address, and the activity may be input for enrollment.

FIG. 5 illustrates the facility enrollment step 3 and illustrates ascreenshot 501 which may indicate that the facility 111 will receive aconfirmation email with initial login instructions to set up a profileincluding the usage fee to be paid by the student. Furthermore, thescreenshot 501 indicates the website support team will contact thefacility 111 for an on-site equipment installation evaluation visit.

The confirmation email includes a link to FIG. 6 which illustrates ascreenshot 601 of the login page to allow the user to enter the login IDand password.

FIG. 7 illustrates a screenshot 701 to allow the facility 111 to inputinformation such as facility ID, facility name, facility email address,facility physical address, facility phone number, facility websiteaddress and other facility information.

FIG. 8 illustrates a screenshot 801 which includes the dates of themonth and the times that the facility is available for theinstructor/student to schedule use of the facility. Correspondingly, theavailability calendar shows when the facility 111 is not available foruse by the student.

FIG. 9 illustrates a screenshot 901 showing the facility fees includingvideo recording a lesson from an on-site instructor, taking a lessonfrom the present invention remote instructor and video recording apractice ride.

FIG. 10 illustrates a screenshot 1010 of a current monthly financialreport for a facility 111, showing the invoice date, description,transaction number and amount.

FIG. 11 illustrates a screenshot 1101 showing the ability to drill downon a particular month for financial statements.

FIG. 12 illustrates a screenshot 1201 showing the ability to drill downon a particular transaction to view transaction details for anindividual session including lesson number, date, student, instructor,facility, scheduled and actual start time, video link and fee.

FIG. 13 illustrates a screenshot 1301 showing the facility scheduledlesson calendar including scheduled times and unscheduled times.

FIG. 14 illustrates a screenshot 1401 showing the calendar which showsthe schedule of an on-site instructor lesson by day.

Each of the screenshots of the present invention may be displayed on thestudent device 101, the facility device 103 or the instructor device105.

FIG. 15 illustrates a landing page showing the student experience and orthe instructor experience. The student experience may be a video showingthe student from a video camera, and the instructor experience mayinclude a multitude of sample video showing different angles of the samemovement depicting the instructor's console.

FIG. 16 illustrates a screenshot 1601 showing the instructor enrollmentfor step 1 and includes reasons why the present invention will grow theinstructor's business. Instruction revenue can be obtained from studentsoutside the instructor's geographical area. The instructor receives aninstruction fee for a specified lesson time frame. The availabilityoptions include open schedule allowing the student to view and booklessons; and the present invention provides instructor option topre-approve student prior to displaying schedule and allowing student toview and book lessons. The refund policy may include no refund/noreschedule, no refund but allow reschedule at no cost to the student orrefund. The instructor and student may receive an email/text reminder ofthe scheduled lesson a predetermined time before the scheduled lesson.The present invention may collect fees after each lesson and pay theinstructor and facility monthly.

FIG. 17 illustrates a screenshot 1701 instructor enrollment (step two)showing data fields including the first name, last name, email address,login ID, password, confirm password, address, phone number, webaddress, and activity.

FIG. 18 illustrates the screenshot 1801 showing instructor enrollment instep three. The present invention generates a welcome message, a messageindicating a confirmation email will be sent and a test video stream toconfirm the computer settings of instructor device 105.

The confirmation email includes a link to FIG. 19 which illustrates ascreenshot 1901 showing the login page for the instructor including alogin ID and password.

FIG. 20 illustrates an instructor portal as shown through a screenshot2001 which may include a calendar including scheduled times andunscheduled times.

FIG. 21 illustrates a screenshot 2101 to allow the instructor to inputinformation including first name, last name, email address, login ID,password, physical address, phone, website address, picture, activity,participation type, communication method, language, and credentials.

FIG. 22 illustrates a screenshot 2201 which includes a calendar showingthe instructor availability for each day of the calendar.

FIG. 23 illustrates a screenshot 2301 to display instructor fees andpayment information and may include the on-site instructor fee, thepresent invention video capture and review/coaching fee and the lessonduration. Payment information may also be displayed.

FIG. 24 illustrates a screenshot 2401 and illustrates a statement reviewdisplaying the invoice date, the description, the bank transactionnumber, and the amount.

FIG. 25 illustrates a screenshot 2501 which may include selected monthlytransactions which may show the current statement, the previousstatements and year-to-date.

FIG. 26 illustrates a screenshot 2601 which may display transactiondetails which may include lesson number, date, student, trainer,facility, scheduled start time, schedule and time, actual start time,actual and time, video link, and bank transaction number.

FIG. 27 illustrates a screenshot 2701 which may include a calendar and aactivate lesson button. A particular lesson may be selected, and it mayshow the lesson number, the date the student, the instructor, thefacility, the instructional area and the scheduled start time. Inaddition, a activate lessons button and a cancel lesson button may bedisplayed to activate the lesson with the student or to cancel thelesson with the student.

FIG. 28 illustrates a screenshot 2801 to conduct the lesson with thestudent and instructor and may include a lesson video from feed 1 whichmay be connected to the first video camera 113 and a lesson video feed 2which may be connected to the second video camera 115. Additional feedsfor example video lesson feed 3 and lesson video feed number 4 may beincluded with the present invention to simultaneously capture differentangles of the same movement. The instructor may enter notes tomemorialize the student's lesson that will be shared as part of thestudent's video library.

FIG. 29 illustrates a screenshot 2901 which may include information anda select button for a multitude of students to video an on-site lesson.The screenshot 2901 may include the student name, the student number andthe lesson time. The screenshot 2901 may include a start and stop buttonto start and stop the lesson. The present invention will post the videoartifact to each of the participating student's video library.

FIG. 30 illustrates a screenshot 3001 to record the on-site lesson. Amultitude of video feeds may be established to simultaneously capturedifferent angles of the same movement. The present invention may alsoallow the camera to follow a moving student and automatically adjustzoom to a predefined distance. The present invention will post the videoartifact to the student's video library.

FIG. 31 illustrates a screenshot 3101 to conduct a video review/coachingsession which may include a Skype web cam session to allow theinstructor and student to view each other and a video of the practicesession. The present invention will post the video artifact to thestudent's video library.

FIG. 32 illustrates a screenshot 3201 which may illustrate aninstructor's learning library summary which may include the date, theinstructor's name, the facility name, the duration of the session, adescription of the session and the student name. The screenshot 3201 mayinclude a thumbnail of the session.

FIG. 33 illustrates a screenshot 3301 which may include a learninglibrary detail which may be a drill down of the screenshot 3201 and mayprovide a video from the various feeds taken during the session. Thisallows the instructor to return to evaluate their student's sessions.

FIG. 34 illustrates a landing page showing the student experience and orthe instructor experience. The student experience may be a video showingthe student from a video camera, and the instructor experience mayinclude a multitude of sample video showing the instructor's console.

FIG. 35 illustrates a screenshot 3501 which may be for the studentenrollment step one which communicates the benefits of the presentinvention. The screenshot 3501 may include that the present inventionmay include instructors and allows the student to pick the instructorand schedule the session time. The present invention may send anemail/text reminder a predetermined time before the lesson. The presentinvention may communicate with the instructor using a wireless audioear/bug, eliminating distance or environmental distortion. The presentinvention may view the student from multiple angles providing a 360°perspective for the instructor. The present invention bills the studentafter the lesson. The present invention manages a video playlist of thelessons and practice sessions for a monthly fee. The present inventionaccepts a video description to capture the nature of the session/lesson.The present invention may tag the video of the student to mark portionsof the video that the student may want to review in the future. Thepresent invention allows friends and family to share the videos. Thestudent may purchase a wireless ear bug and provide facility informationif the facility has not already been registered so that video camerasand Internet streaming device can be installed.

FIG. 36 illustrates a screenshot 3601 which may include the studentenrollment step 2 which may include the ability of the student to enterthe first name, the last name, the email address, a login ID, apassword, a confirm password, and address, a phone number and activity.

FIG. 37 illustrates a screenshot 3701 which may include a studentenrollment step 3 which may include a message of congratulations andwelcome message, a message that the student will receive a confirmationemail and a link to allow the student to set up a profile.

FIG. 38 illustrates a screenshot 3801 which may be a login page for thestudent and may include a login ID field and password field.

FIG. 39 illustrates a screenshot 3901 which may include a studentportal, which may include a calendar to schedule a session and may havethe ability to drill down to input a instructor, activity, start date,start time, duration and facility for the session.

FIG. 40 illustrates a screenshot 4001 which may include a screenshot toinput student general information which may include the first name ofthe student, the last name, the email address, the login ID, thepassword, the address the phone number, and the communication method.

FIG. 41 illustrates a screenshot of the program offerings of the presentinvention which may include the basic membership which may manage apredetermined number of hours, videos being recorded by the presentinvention, the lessons, on site instructor lesson, practice session, theability to upload student videos, communication with the instructors,share video with the friends. The membership may include additionalvideo lesson hours.

FIG. 42 illustrates a screenshot 4201 which may include the studentbilling information allowing the student to input an account number tobill for the services of the present invention.

FIG. 43 illustrates a screenshot 4301 which may include a studentstatement review which may display the invoice date, the description,the bank transaction number and the amount charged for the session.

FIG. 44 illustrates the screenshot 4401 which may include the studentstatement review which may be displaying a drill down which may includerecent activity, the current statement, the previous statements and theyear to date statements.

FIG. 45 illustrates a screenshot 4501 which may include the studentstatement review which may show a drill down for a lesson which mayinclude a lesson number, a date, the student name, the inventor, thefacility, the scheduled start time, the schedule end time, the actualstart time, the actual end time, a link to the video, the fee and thebank transaction number.

FIG. 46 illustrates a screenshot 4601 which may include a calendar forthe student to train and may include dates for the actual lesson, the onsite lesson, a practice session and a video review/coaching session.

FIG. 47 illustrates a screenshot 4701 which may include a calendar forthe instructors and illustrates a drill down for allowing the schedulingof an instructor for an activity including a start date, a start time,duration and a facility 111 for the session to be held.

FIG. 48 illustrates a screenshot 4801 which may include a schedule foran instructor and may include a drill down to list the available timesfor the instructor.

FIG. 49 illustrates a screenshot 4901 of a calendar for scheduling thefacility 111 for the training session and may include a drill down for aparticular date to list the available times of the facility 111.

FIG. 50 illustrates a screenshot 5001 for scheduling the on-sitepractice session and illustrates a calendar and a drill down to showavailable times for the facility 111. A box may be checked to performactual scheduling of the facility 111.

FIG. 51 illustrates a screenshot 5101 of the student's library landingpage and may include a list of lesson videos and may include a thumbnailof the lesson video, the type of lesson, the date of lesson, theinstructor name, the facility name, the duration of the session and adescription of the session. The screenshot includes a box to select adesired lesson.

FIG. 52 illustrates a screenshot 5201 which may include the lessonvideos from a selected video in selected screenshot 5101 and may includea video from feed 1 which may be from the first video camera 113, asecond video feed 2 which may be from the second video camera 115, athird video feed 3 and a fourth video feed 4.

FIG. 53 illustrates a screenshot 5301 and illustrates the video libraryhighlights of the student and may include a thumbnail of the lessonvideo, the date, the instructor's name, the family name, the duration,the description, the video library footer, and a thumbnail of highlightsas chosen by the student.

FIG. 54 illustrates a screenshot 5401 which may be a screenshot toupload video and which may include a drill down when the make videobutton has been activated. The screenshot 5401 may include a find videobutton, a load button, a date, a duration, the instructor's name, thefamily name and a description.

FIG. 55 illustrates a screenshot 5501 which may be used to make videobased on selections and may include lesson videos which may include athumbnail, date, instructor name, name of the facility 111, duration,description, video library folder, highlight, and may include buttons todesired video.

FIG. 56 illustrates a screenshot 5601 to make a video including asequence and label. The screenshot 5601 may include a drill down to makea video and includes a create button to create the video indicated bythe date, duration, instructor name, family name and description.

FIG. 57 illustrates a screenshot 5701 which may include a progressanalysis selection and illustrates a thumbnail of the video, a date,instructor name, the name of the facility 111, the duration, thedescription, the video library folder, and highlights and a selectionbutton.

FIG. 58 illustrates a screenshot 5801 to provide progressive analysisviewing and which may include lesson video feed 1 from the first videocamera 113, the lesson video feed 2 from the second video camera 115,lesson video feed 3 and lesson video feed 4 for each of the sessions thestudent may want to compare to measure their progress.

FIG. 59 illustrates a flowchart of the present invention and illustratesa step 5901 to generate first video signals at a first angle, a step5903 to generate second video signals at a second angle, a step 5905 totransmit the first and second video to a remote location, a step 5907 toinstruct the student from the remote location based upon the first andsecond video, a step 5909 to record the first and second video into alibrary and a step 5911 to access the stored video at the library byeither the instructor or the student.

While the invention is susceptible to various modifications andalternative forms, specific embodiments thereof have been shown by wayof example in the drawings and are herein described in detail. It shouldbe understood, however, that the description herein of specificembodiments is not intended to limit the invention to the particularforms disclosed.

1) A method for instructing a student, comprising the steps of:generating a first video feed of first video signals to record thestudent at a first angle at a facility; generating a second video feedof second video signals to record the student at a second angle at thefacility; transmitting the first video feed and the second video feed toa remote location to the facility; providing instruction to the studentby an instructor at the remote location simultaneously as the firstvideo feed and the second video feed is being generated. 2) A method forinstructing a student as in claim 1, wherein the first video feed isgenerated by a first video camera. 3) A method for instructing a studentas in claim 1, wherein the second video feed is generated by a secondvideo camera. 4) A method for instructing a student as in claim 1,wherein the first video feed is recorded into a library at the remotelocation. 5) A method for instructing a student as in claim 1, whereinthe second video feed is stored in a library at the remote location. 6)A method for instructing a student as in claim 4, wherein the studentaccesses the first video feed stored at the library at the remotelocation. 7) A method for instructing a student as in claim 5, whereinthe student accesses the second video feed stored at the library at thelocation. 8) A method for instructing a student as in claim 4 whereinthe instructor accesses the first video feed stored at the library atthe remote location. 9) A method for instructing a student as in claim5, wherein the instructor accesses the second video feed stored at thelibrary at the remote location.